


For the Love of Lattes

by DirtyBrian



Category: Broadchurch
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-04
Updated: 2017-02-04
Packaged: 2018-09-22 01:57:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9577109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DirtyBrian/pseuds/DirtyBrian
Summary: Prompt: Hardy x Miller reunion where Hardy shaves his beard and Ellie doesn't recognize him. Slightly cracky, of course.





	

“I’ve got it,“ said a voice behind her. Ellie turned and saw a handsome, clean-cut man holding his card out to the cashier. “Add a large coffee to the ticket, please.”

“You don’t have to,” Ellie protested weakly, secretly thrilled that the stranger was buying her cuppa. He looked down at her, brown eyes confused for some reason.

“I know that. But I wanted to.” The cashier handed them their coffees, and Ellie thanked the tall stranger profusely. She’d just turned back towards her table when she heard him speak again. “Where are you sitting?” She looked over her shoulder, eyebrows raised.

“M’over here. Care to join me?” She smiled in what she hoped was a flirty fashion and finished the trek to her table, putting an extra bounce in her step as she walked. He followed close behind her and sat in the chair opposite hers, lying his coffee, phone, and keys in an orderly line. She took a moment to observe the handsome man- he was clean-shaven and his thick, brown hair was impeccably coiffed. He was tall and slim, and she couldn’t help but to let her gaze linger on his really, really gorgeous hands. She cleared her throat and took a drink of her too-hot latte, wincing as it went down her throat.

“So,” he said, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. If Ellie had to guess, she’d think he looked nervous; but he was the one who paid for her coffee and invited himself to sit with her, so she figured she was imagining it.

“So,” she said, offering him a grin. “you’re more than welcome to join me, obviously. But you should know I’m waiting for a friend.” She checked her watch- Hardy was a late. She couldn’t help but be slightly relieved; she wanted a few minutes to flirt with this strange addition to her day, maybe even leave him with her number. “I mean, he’s a bit late, so you’re more than welcome to stay until then.” Her eyes were bright when she looked up from her phone, but she didn’t expect to see the flash of hurt cross his face. “You all right?”

“Yeah, m’fine.” He shifted in his seat again, eyes darting towards the door like he was thinking of making a mad dash. “So, this bloke you’re meeting up with…friend?” he swallowed thickly. “Boyfriend?”

“No, no, nothing like that,” Ellie said, taking a sip of her drink. “He’s…” she paused, trying to figure where on the friendship spectrum she’d categorize her relationship with the grumpy ex-DI. “He’s a friend, I suppose. A work mate, if you want to get down to it. We haven’t seen each other in a while, and I was hoping we could catch up. I dunno really what we are.” She found herself gazing wistfully down at the lip of her coffee cup, thumb toying with the edge of the paper sleeve. Her gaze turned mischievous as she turned her eyes back to the stranger. “Why, jealous?”

She was completely delighted by the flush that coated his cheeks. “Of course not! Just seems like your schedule is kind of over-booked.”

“What do you mean?” She cocked her head to the side, trying to think if she’d mentioned anything earlier about her agenda for the day.

“Well, you ask me here for coffee and as soon as I sit down, you tell me that you’re here to see someone else.” A slight tinge of irritation crept into his voice, and with a start, Ellie realized exactly who she was talking to.

“ _ Hardy?!”  _ Instantly, her face flamed bright red, and she clapped a hand to her mouth.

“Of course it’s me, Miller. Who the bloody hell else would it be?” He furrowed an eyebrow at her when she didn’t answer right away, too caught up in her own mortification to respond. “Miller?”

“Oh god, I don’t know! I was waiting for you and I went and got coffee and then this really handsome bloke bought it and I didn’t know it was you  _ what did you do to your hair?!” _ She realized about two seconds too late what she said and groaned, dropping her head into her folded arms before Hardy could respond.

“Handsome?”

“Shut up shut up shut up.”

“But handsome?” She could hear the amusement in his voice, and she wanted to slap him for the smirk she knew was dancing across his face.

“Yes, handsome, all right? You look,” she waved her hands ineffectually, trying to come up with a good word. “Good. You look good, all right?” She knew she was still blushing and refused to meet his gaze.

“And you really didn’t recognize me?”

“Not without the bloody beard I didn’t. And you look like you’ve actually slept, for once.” The words were more harsh than she intended, and she immediately felt guilty. It wasn’t his fault that this was the most embarrassing moment of her life. “Really. You look good. Happy.”

She chanced a quick look up at him, and was surprised to see him looking down at his own coffee, a light flush staining his cheeks. “Thanks, Miller,” he mumbled, pulling the cup to his lips and taking a hasty sip.

“You  _ were  _ jealous,” she said, realization dawning as she gazed at Hardy. He sputtered in response, and his blush deepened to a bright red. It was his turn to avoid her gaze, and Ellie couldn’t help the gleeful smile that spread across her face- both at his reaction and having the embarrassment shifted off of her. “You were jealous of this bloke, weren’t you?”

“And if I was?” he grumbled, making a face at her. “It’s been ages. Was looking forward to-“ he floundered for a moment, trying to find his words. “To seeing you again.”

His eyes were surprisingly sincere, and Ellie couldn’t stop how her heart skipped half a beat. “Well,” she murmured, ducking her head, “good thing you were the bloke, yeah?” She took a breath and straightened her spine, silently resolving to not let her be embarrassed again.

Hardy matched her posture, his shoulders relaxing as he took another sip of coffee. They fell into an easy conversation, catching up on the events of the past few weeks, and making plans to see one another again before so much time had passed. Ellie almost forgot about the earlier awkwardness until they were getting up to leave.

“Miller?”

“Yeah?”

“Were you flirting with me?”

“Shit.”


End file.
